BEHAVIORAL AND HORMONAL ASPECTS OF REPRODUCTION IN CAPTIVE GOELDI MONKEYS (CALLIMICO-GOELDII) IN A COMPARATIVE AND EVOLUTIONARY CONTEXT

The fate of most nonhuman primate species is intimately related to man . The increasing encroachment on the natural habitat has resulted in t he decimation and even near extinction of some species. Along with thi s development, the basic concept in many modern toes has changed from one of merely display to self-perpetuating units. Primate research fac ilities are orienting their research programs towards reproductive phy siology and behavior in an effort to provide basic knowledge of reprod uction in these species. This increased emphasis in the area of reprod uctive biology and the various efforts to improve breeding of these mo stly endangered primates in captivity has stimulated the author to wri te this review. It represents an attempt to provide the reader with ba sic background information relating to the endocrinology and behavior of reproduction in the clawed New World monkeys as it exists at the ti me of publication. The intermediate evolutionary position of Callimico goeldii between the clawed New World monkeys and the 'true New World monkeys' and our relatively poor knowledge about reproduction and beha vior in this particular species fully justifies the focus on Goeldi's monkey in this essay. This review is an attempt to provide a brief his tory of previous studies but also the basis for research in the future . The current status of knowledge of the small-bodied clawed monkeys i s also discussed in an evolutionary context, with an emphasis on the d ifferent reproductive strategies in this dynamic group of primates. Th e outcome, not surprisingly, confirms the unique position of Callimico goeldii in its social, ecological, and evolutionary environment.